Readme update
This commit is contained in:
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# Outlook Case Helper
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# Outlook Case Manager
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A Windows system tray application that automatically organizes Outlook emails by TrackingID into folders.
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**Version:** 1.0.0
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**Released:** March 2026
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**Author:** Wellington Ribeiro — wribeiro@microsoft.com
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---
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## Requirements
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@@ -37,15 +41,32 @@ Inbox > Cases > Closed > <folder name>
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---
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## Tray Menu
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Right-click the tray icon to access all features:
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| Menu Item | Description |
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|---|---|
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| Create Rule (Selected Email) | Creates a rule from the selected email in Outlook |
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| Create Rule (Manual ID) | Creates a rule by manually entering a TrackingID |
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| Remove Rule (Selected Email) | Removes the rule for the selected email's TrackingID |
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| Remove Rule (Manual ID) | Removes a rule by manually entering a TrackingID |
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| Run All Rules Now | Scans all mailbox folders and applies all active rules |
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| View Active Rules | Opens the dashboard to manage all active rules |
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| Settings | Configure keyboard shortcuts and rule file options |
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| Start with Windows | Toggle automatic startup with Windows |
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| About | App information, version and contact |
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| Exit | Closes the application |
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---
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## Features
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### Create Rule (Selected Email)
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Right-click the tray icon → **Create Rule (Selected Email)**
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- Select an email in Outlook first
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- The app reads the `TrackingID#` from the subject automatically
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- Optionally add a name to the folder (e.g. `123456 | Client Name`)
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- All existing emails with that TrackingID are moved immediately
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- All existing emails with that TrackingID are moved immediately from all folders
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- Future emails are moved automatically in real time
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> If the case already exists in **Closed**, it is moved back to **Active** automatically — no new folder is created.
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@@ -53,45 +74,67 @@ Right-click the tray icon → **Create Rule (Selected Email)**
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---
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### Create Rule (Manual ID)
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Right-click the tray icon → **Create Rule (Manual ID)**
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- Manually type a TrackingID number
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- Optionally add a name to the folder
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- Searches and moves all matching emails from Inbox and Sent
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- Searches and moves all matching emails from all folders
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---
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### Remove Rule (Selected Email)
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Right-click the tray icon → **Remove Rule (Selected Email)**
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- Select an email in Outlook first
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- The app reads the TrackingID and removes the active rule
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- The folder is moved from **Active** to **Closed**
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- Monitoring stops for that TrackingID
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- Confirmation popup before closing the case
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---
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### Remove Rule (Manual ID)
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Right-click the tray icon → **Remove Rule (Manual ID)**
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- Manually type a TrackingID number to remove
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- Same behavior as above
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---
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### Run All Rules Now
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Right-click the tray icon → **Run All Rules Now**
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- Scans all folders in the mailbox
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- Scans **all folders** in the mailbox recursively
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- Moves any emails matching active rules to the correct folders
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- Useful after the app was closed for a period
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- Useful after the app was closed for a period or to do a full cleanup
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- Shows a tray notification when complete
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---
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### View Active Rules (Dashboard)
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Opens an interactive dashboard to manage all active rules.
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| Button | Description |
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| Add Rule | Creates a new rule directly from the dashboard |
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| Rename | Renames the selected rule and its Outlook folder |
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| Close Case | Moves the selected folder to Closed (with confirmation) |
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| Reload Rules | Reloads rules from the JSON file without restarting |
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| Refresh | Updates the email count for all rules |
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| Close | Closes the dashboard |
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The dashboard shows for each rule:
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- **Folder Name** — full name including optional label
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- **TrackingID** — the numeric ID extracted from the folder name
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- **Emails** — current number of emails in the folder
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> Double-clicking a rule opens the Rename dialog directly.
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---
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### Settings
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Right-click the tray icon → **Settings**
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Configure keyboard shortcuts and rule file options.
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Configure keyboard shortcuts:
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| Section | Description |
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|---|---|
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| Create Rule shortcut | Keyboard shortcut to create a rule from selected email |
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| Remove Rule shortcut | Keyboard shortcut to remove a rule from selected email |
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| View Rules | Opens `active_rules.json` in Notepad |
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| Reload Rules | Reloads rules from file without restarting |
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Default shortcuts:
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| Action | Default Shortcut |
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|---|---|
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@@ -101,17 +144,17 @@ Configure keyboard shortcuts:
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Modifiers available: **Alt**, **Ctrl**, **Shift**
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Keys available: F1–F12, 0–9, A–Z
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Also available in Settings:
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- **View Rules File** — opens `active_rules.json` in Notepad
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- **Reload Rules** — reloads rules from file without restarting the app
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---
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### Start with Windows
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Right-click the tray icon → **Start with Windows**
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- Toggle whether the app starts automatically when Windows starts
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- Toggles whether the app starts automatically when Windows starts
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- Checkmark indicates current state
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- Stored in the Windows Registry under `HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run`
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---
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### About
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Displays app information including version, release date, description, and contact details.
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---
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@@ -129,17 +172,6 @@ Inbox
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---
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## Rules File
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Rules are stored at:
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```
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C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\OutlookCaseHelper\active_rules.json
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```
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You can edit this file manually in Notepad (via Settings → View Rules File) and reload without restarting.
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---
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## Email Subject Format
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The app looks for emails with subjects containing:
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@@ -151,19 +183,26 @@ Examples:
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- `Case update - TrackingID#1234567890`
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- `Re: Support ticket TrackingID#9876543210123456`
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The number can be any length. Everything before `TrackingID#` is ignored.
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The number can be any length. Everything before and after `TrackingID#<number>` is ignored.
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---
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## Limitations
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## Rules File
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- **Classic Outlook only** — does not work with New Outlook (web-based). New Outlook support via Microsoft Graph API is planned.
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- **Single mailbox** — monitors only the primary Outlook account. Shared mailboxes are not supported.
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- **Outlook must be open** — the app connects to a running Outlook instance. If Outlook is closed, rules are saved but monitoring pauses until Outlook is opened again.
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- **Subject matching only** — rules are matched by subject line. Emails without `TrackingID#` in the subject are ignored.
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- **No undo** — moving folders to Closed or Active cannot be undone through the app. Use Outlook directly to move folders manually if needed.
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- **Manual file editing** — if you edit `active_rules.json` manually, use **Reload Rules** in Settings or restart the app for changes to take effect.
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- **Case sensitivity** — `TrackingID#` is case-sensitive. `trackingid#` or `TRACKINGID#` will not be matched.
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Rules are stored at:
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```
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C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\OutlookCaseHelper\active_rules.json
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```
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You can edit this file manually:
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1. Open **Settings → View Rules** to open the file in Notepad
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2. Edit the JSON array — each entry is a folder name string
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3. Click **Settings → Reload Rules** to apply changes without restarting
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Example file:
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```json
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["123456 | Client Name", "789012", "654321 | Old Project"]
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```
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---
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@@ -180,11 +219,31 @@ Shortcuts can be changed in **Settings**.
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---
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## Limitations
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- **Classic Outlook only** — does not work with New Outlook (web-based). New Outlook support via Microsoft Graph API is planned for a future version.
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- **Single mailbox** — monitors only the primary Outlook account. Shared mailboxes are not supported.
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- **Outlook must be open** — the app connects to a running Outlook instance. If Outlook is closed, rules are saved but monitoring pauses until Outlook is reopened.
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- **Subject matching only** — rules are matched by subject line. Emails without `TrackingID#` in the subject are ignored.
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- **Case sensitivity** — `TrackingID#` is case-sensitive. `trackingid#` or `TRACKINGID#` will not be matched.
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- **No undo** — moving folders to Closed or Active cannot be undone through the app. Use Outlook directly to move folders manually if needed.
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---
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## Uninstall
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Go to **Control Panel → Programs → Uninstall a program** → select **Outlook Case Helper** → Uninstall.
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Go to **Control Panel → Programs → Uninstall a program** → select **Outlook Case Manager** → Uninstall.
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Rules and settings stored in `AppData` are not removed automatically. Delete the folder manually if needed:
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```
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C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\OutlookCaseHelper\
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```
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---
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## Contact
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**Wellington Ribeiro**
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wribeiro@microsoft.com
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For suggestions or bug reports, please send an email with the subject **Outlook Case Manager - Feedback**.
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